The Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is a federally required planning document produced annually by the Cape Cod Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). The TIP lists all transit and highway projects that are anticipated to be implemented with federal aid over a four-year horizon and goes beyond federal requirements by listing non-federal aid highway projects as well. The TIP is financially constrained and can only program projects for which funds are expected to be available. A transit project must be programmed in the TIP in order to receive federal funding.

 

 

Most roadway projects begin at the local level with the identification of a particular need or deficiency. If the city or town is seeking state or federal participation, the project must be coordinated through MassHighway. To initiate this process, the city or town must contact the appropriate MassHighway District Office. Assuming the district and the community agree on the merits of the project, the district submits a Project Need Form (PNF) to the MassHighway District Office and the Cape Cod Commission. The project request is then submitted to MassHighway’s Project Review Committee (PRC) for a determination of funding eligibility and project feasibility. If the project is approved by the PRC, it is entered into MassHighway’s internal project information system (ProjectInfo) and assigned to a project manager.

 

For most roadway projects, the city or town is responsible for funding and overseeing all facets of the design process, including acquisition of any necessary right-of-way. The project manager works with the community and the design consultant to shepherd the project through the process. Typical milestones in the design process include: submission and approval of the 25% design plans, a public hearing on the 25% design, submission and approval of the 75% design plans, submission and approval of the 100% design plans, and preparation of the plans, specifications and estimates (PSE). Concurrent with this process, right-of-way must be acquired and environmental requirements must be satisfied.

 

Other roadway projects and most bridge projects are initiated by MassHighway. These projects are often identified through one of MassHighway’s ongoing management systems. The Bridge Management System, the Safety Management System, the Congestion Management System, and the Pavement Management System periodically monitor roadway facilities to estimate current or future construction needs. Projects may also be identified through planning or corridor studies. Regardless of their genesis, these projects go through the design process discussed above. However, for these projects, MassHighway assumes responsibility for funding and overseeing all facets of the design process, including the acquisition of any necessary right-of-way.

 

The process for developing transit projects differs from that used for roadway projects. The Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (CCRTA) works with the Cape Cod Commission and the Cape Cod MPO to program funds for vehicle acquisition, maintenance projects and other improvements.

 

 

The TIP is developed by the MPO. The process begins with the development of programming targets.

 

MassHighway, in consultation with the Massachusetts Association of Regional Planning Agencies (MARPA), estimates the amount of federal and state funding available for highway projects over the period of the TIP. The Planning and Programming Committee then develops a financially constrained TIP by reviewing all of the highway projects contained in ProjectInfo and any other project proposals eligible for federal funding (e.g., transportation demand management projects). Projects are selected for programming in the TIP based upon various factors, including but not limited to: facility condition, mobility needs, safety issues, policy considerations, geographic equity, and design readiness.

 

For the transit program, the CCRTA provides the MPO with an estimate of available transit funding for a four-year period and a recommended list of projects to fund under the program.

 

The MPO developed criteria to select projects for the TIP in order to promote a fair and objective process. The project selection criteria address condition, safety, mobility, cost-effectiveness, economic development, land use, community impact and other pertinent factors. These factors outline project information forms as a means for the MPO to collect information about projects. Once the information is collected, it is analyzed by the Cape Cod Commission as staff to the MPO and the results are passed on to the Joint Transportation Committee (JTC), which is made up of representatives of the Cape Cod communities as well as a representative of bicycle and pedestrian interests.  The JTC then advises the MPO on how to proceed in prioritizing projects to program. 

 

 

The MPO is made up of nine voting members: the Executive Office of Transportation, MassHighway, the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, the Cape Cod Commission, the Barnstable County Commissioners, the town of Barnstable and one town from each of the three sub-regions on Cape Cod. Currently, the three towns represented are Dennis, Mashpee, and Orleans.

 

 

The TIP Project Manager is Bob Mumford, Transportation Program Manager of the Cape Cod Commission.

Phone: (508) 362-3828.

 

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